Friday, January 22, 2010

In Salt Lake City the term "Temple" is usually reserved for a non-Jewish building. There are many "temples" in the SLC area, and the Latter Day Saints keep adding to their collection of Temples around the globe at a dizzying pace.

Still, the "other" Temple building sect (AKA: The Jews) did and do have a presence in the area as well. I had often driven by the distinctive Temple building near my work place, and the other day when taking a break, decided it was time to take a closer look.

Utah's Division of State History places these sort of markers in front of building of historical interest. Personally, I really appreciate getting the scoop on the place before entering.

Those stained glass windows that I could see from the outside are gorgeous when viewed from the inside. Notice that they do not have any human figures in their designs, as to avoid making a graven image. Churches likewise avoided human and animal representation right up until the early 1900's. You can practically date a church by stain glass window design.

Sweet...simple...lovely.

I could find a peaceful mental place in such a design.

The building is now a design center. It houses a large firm that designs interior spaces...furniture, walls, lighting etc. They didn't mind me wandering about and snapping pictures.

I wish I could have asked someone to explain what each area of the building was originally used for....and what was new and what was old.

The receptionist was quite friendly, but busy.

I didn't ask her any questions.

It was a short visit...a nice visit...and a few minutes later I was back outside and walking briskly back to my own workplace.

Isn't it odd that a beautiful place designed for worship is now being used for a business, while so often modern places of worship are often housed in places originally designed for business?

My own church meets inside a former industrial warehouse.

I'm not sure what I think about this turn of events.

Will people a century from now visit our warehouse churches and wonder why they were so plain?

Or will they wonder why our time period had churches at all?

******

(Update on Bible Verses on weapons post of a few days ago: the company that manufactures the weapon sights has decided to discontinues using those particular letters and numbers on their sights, and will be sending kits to the military so the numbers and letters can be removed.

They are a privately held company and of course are free to do whatever they want.

I think they were probably pressured to remove the Bible verse citations if they wanted to continue to receive the government contract.

If I am right about the pressure, then I am concerned for Christian businesses here in America. It looks like yet another step to becoming a country that no longer has Freedom of Religion, but instead has Freedom From Religion).

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

You are tasked with keeping it clean, loading, unloading, firing it accurately.

On the weapon's scope these letters and numbers are engraved in tiny letters:

ACOG2COR4:6

or maybe

ACOGJN8:12

Now tell me exactly what those letters and numbers mean.

Exactly what they mean.

Not just "I think it means...."

Drawing a blank?

Personally, I think the most you could say it means in a court of law would be ACOG2COR4:6.

Anything else would be supposition.

According to this article, a gun sight manufacturing company called Trijicon has always engraved their sights thusly. The company's founded was from South Africa and wanted it so.

After all...it was HIS company...he therefore was entitled to engrave anything he wanted on his products that wasn't a trademark design from any other company.

Mr. Glyn Bindon's sights were so well made that the US government contracted to have the company make sights for the US military weapons.

But apparently, according to Mr. Michael "Mickey" Weinstein, of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, those letters and numbers ACOG2COR4:6 constitutes the establishment of a religion within the US government. "It violates the constitution!" Mr. Weinstein cries. "It violates the principle of the separation of church and state!"

All together now: HUH???????

Yes, with those simple letters and number, a religion is established.

I am horrified. I have often use the those letters and numbers in public libraries, and in private places as well. I'm pretty sure I have even seen 2, R, 4, O etc. etc on all kinds of government documents.

It is a plot...surely a plot to make Americans HAVE to be part of a new religion!

Join me now in rolling your eyes such nonsense.

The US constitution does not mention ANYWHERE the idea of separation of church and state. The idea was brought up in a letter by a founding father who mentioned that there should be a wall separating church and state, to prevent the "state" from interfering with "church".

The letter in no way suggested that the church should refrain from influencing the state. In fact, President John Quincy Adams used to give sermons with altar calls to "come to Jesus and make him LORD".

(He, by the way, was the son of John Adam who was there when the Constitution was written. If there was such a thing as separation of Church and State in the Constitution, his dad would have been quick to have corrected his son's practice!)

Now maybe....maybe if the sights had had an entire scripture spelled out instead of just (what only might be assumed to be by some) a chapter and verse cryptic reference via letters and numbers from the Bible, maybe that could be considered problematic.

Maybe person in the military would not want to use an excellent weapon if it had a phase that they considered offensive engraved on it.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

(The day after I had a student do my make-up I was asked if I was willing to allow a Masters level student practice a skin treatment on me. You can see the make-up shots following this post, the make-up was done BEFORE any of the treatments on this post).

BEFORE

Here's me showing some courage:

Posting a picture of my skin without any make-up just prior to attending to another job duty.

This time I was about to have my upper face treated with galvantic current, a high tech wonder treatment that will reduce wrinkles, improve tone and sagging, hydrate, and generally improve my skin in every way anyone could ever wish for.

Usually results come immediately and skin continues to improve with each treatments.

I'm going to be photo documenting the results on my skin each session just to see what happens.

Here goes session #1:

AFTER

The Masters Level student work only on my eye and forehead area.

There is a definite difference on my forehead skin and some changes in the eye wrinkles,

BEFORE

AFTER

Hmmm....not sure I see a lot of difference in the photo. A little less eye wrinkling, but better skin tone for sure.

(You can see the dual tipped applicator above my eyebrow in this shot.)

The treatment occasionally felt a little prickly, like when arm hair is caught in fine knit fabrics. Not bad, just a light sensation. A whole lot of stuff is going on with this kind of treatment but it is totally relaxing for me.

Next time I really want my lower face done too...

Then, because I was there, and they offered....I had microdermabrasion done as well.

In the above picture fine particles of something is being sandblasted onto my skin, and then suctioned off.

Before either treatment....

After both treatments.

Oh yes...I see a definite difference!

Smooth and glowing skin.

Apparently the galvanic treatment and the microdermabrasion can both be done every 4-6 weeks.

I'll be curious to see how much change I will see in my skin after my next treatment.

(And the next and the next...I'd sort of like to have my skin back to how it looked at age 20!)

I'll have to ask if the school will be doing these treatments during the weekend clinics.

Sometimes working as a corporate librarian requires me to be willing to be flexible.

For example, last Wednesday the Esthetician class had an uneven number of students.

A request went out for someone willing to step in so every student would have a chance to work on someone.

Turned out I would be made up by Kelley.I know Kelley pretty well; he has completed both the massage programs and now is working on his Esthetican degree.He will one day be the "go to" guy for all spa work...massage, facials, make-up...

Kelley had a photograph of a model, and his task was to replicate the model's make up on me.

Pretty fancy eyes for a routine day at the office.

Funny...I don't recall any thing in Library School about this kind of duty.

I'm Jill. I'm a librarian and milliner now living in Salt Lake City with my husband of 37 years and my three shelter adopted cats. I'm 60, was born and expected I would spent my whole life in San Diego, save for two years in Corvallis Oregon in college.
Then beginning in 1997, right after our youngest graduated from high school my husband and I began "empty nesting" on the move. We lived one year in Almenden CA (San Jose area), two years in Dallas TX and eight years on Houston TX before moving Salt Lake City in the fall of 2008.
I love it here, but counting on Heaven being my ultimate hometown! I do hope we will one day be neighbors there?
I have two adult children; a daughter in San Diego and a son (and daughter-in-law) who also live in Salt Lake City; two beloved grandsons, and parents who were born and still live in San Diego, and who read my blog every day.